By Academy Public AffairsFalconSAT-2 was shipped to the Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Test Site on Kwajalien Atoll in the Marshall Islands, located in the central Pacific. The satellite will ride into space aboard a commercial rocket, in a launch scheduled for Nov. 25 at 1 p.m.

FalconSAT-2 was originally slated for launch aboard a space shuttle in early 2003, but the Columbia disaster put that launch on hold until this year.

This satellite is the product of the Academy's Space Systems Research Center, where cadets "learn space by doing space," said Lt. Col. Tim Lawrence, center director. The center runs a multi-disciplinary two-semester astronautical engineering course where cadets put theory into practice by designing and constructing a small satellite for Department of Defense research programs. They will then operate the satellite from the Academy's ground station.snip------------------------------------------------------------Well I expect we will have an interesting time looking up in the New Year as well.- LRK -

Musk added that the Falcon 1 flight could be rescheduled within one week, but would likely take longer since additional liquid oxygen fuel must be delivered from Hawaii to the firm’s remote launch site on the Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean’s Marshall Islands chain.

Today’s attempted space shot was slated to orbit the FalconSat-2 satellite on a mission for the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) and the U.S. Air Force. The $800,000 satellite – built by cadets at the U.S. Air Force Academy – is designed to study space plasma and its potential to interfere with navigation and communication satellites, U.S. Air Force Academy officials said.

The El Segundo, California-based SpaceX hoped to make its commercial launch service debut with today’s planned space shot. The firm has spent about three years developing a family of Falcon boosters to grow from its Falcon 1 design and Merlin rocket engine.

"Unfortunately, in this business there is always a chance for something not to go [as planned]," said Larry Williams, SpaceX vice president for international and government affairs, as the countdown clock ticked down.

Poor weather caused a one-hour delay early in the countdown, though an incorrectly set valve on a liquid oxygen fuel fill tank led to a longer hiatus that eventually prompted SpaceX officials to extend their launch window.

But the loss of liquid oxygen – which boils away during launch preparations and must be replenished regularly – was too great, SpaceX officials said, adding that a main engine computer glitch also caused enough concern to reschedule the mission.

Launch debut deferred

SpaceX aims at providing low-cost launch services for both small and large payloads. Falcon 1 launches have a set cost of about $6.7 million, Musk said before today’s launch attempt.

The firm’s Falcon 1 rocket is a two-stage booster that stands about 68 feet (21 meters) tall and carries a reusable first stage. Its Merlin 1 engine is designed to generate about 77,000 pounds of thrust and loft payloads of up to 1,256 pounds (570 kilograms) into low-Earth orbit, SpaceX officials have said.

The private launch firm SpaceX will loft its Falcon 1 rocket on Nov. 25, marking the booster’s maiden flight and hopefully the first of many space shots to come, the company’s chief said Friday.

Elon Musk, founder and CEO of the El Segundo, California-based SpaceX, said his firm’s first Falcon 1 rocket will liftoff from its equatorial launch site at 4:00 p.m. EST (2100 GMT) on a mission to orbit a small U.S. Air Force Academy satellite.

"I actually don’t feel nervous, I feel relief," Musk told reporters during a press conference. "No matter what happens next week, this is something that is the first stepping stone in reducing the cost of access to space."

The rocket’s first flight will launch from the U.S. military’s Ronald Reagan Ballistic Missile Test Site on Omelek Island near Kwajalein Atoll in the Pacific Ocean’s Marshall Islands – where it will be 9:00 a.m. local time when the countdown reaches zero – though future spaceflights will also be staged from California’s Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, they added.

"We feel at peace with ourselves in this launch because we’ve really done all we can," Musk said. "I think that I can say with confidence that we’ve left no stone unturned."snip=============================================================http://www.spacetoday.net/Summary/3155SpaceX announces Falcon 1 launch datePosted: Fri, Nov 18, 2005, 8:13 PM ET (0113 GMT)

Space Exploration Technologies (SpaceX), the launch vehicle startup established by dot.com entrepreneur Elon Musk, announced Friday that the first launch of its Falcon 1 rocket has been scheduled for Friday. The Falcon 1 will lift off from Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands at 4 pm EST (2100 GMT) Friday, November 25, or 9 am local time November 26. The launch window lasts for four hours, and Musk said that would be several additional days available to conduct the launch if the initial launch is scrubbed. The Falcon 1 is carrying Falconsat 2, a small satellite built by the US Air Force Academy to study how space physics phenomena can affect GPS and other communications. Musk has spent about $100 million of his own money establishing the company and developing the Falcon 1, while also planning the development of two larger vehicles, the Falcon 5 and Falcon 9. SpaceX hopes to prove that the Falcon 1, with a list price of $6.7 million a launch, can provide reliable launches for a fraction of the price ofexisting vehicles.snip=============================================================http://msnbc.msn.com/id/10101621/SpaceX schedules its maiden rocket launchFalcon 1 due to carry military satellite to orbit on Nov. 25By Tariq MalikUpdated: 9:23 p.m. ET Nov. 18, 2005

The Falcon launch vehicle family is designed to provide breakthrough advances in reliability, cost, flight environment and time to launch. The primary design driver is and will remain reliability, as described in more detail below. We recognize that nothing is more important than getting our customer’s spacecraft safely to its intended destination.

Launch ManifestBelow is the upcoming launch manifest. SpaceX has launch complexes at Cape Canaveral, Vandenberg and the Marshall Islands (Kwajalein Atoll), allowing direct launch to any inclination. Through our Kwajalein launch site on Omelek Island, SpaceX is the only US heavy lift provider with an equatorial launch location.snip=============================================================http://www.spaceflightnow.com/falcon/050527frf/Privately-made Falcon 1 rocket roars on the padBY JUSTIN RAYSPACEFLIGHT NOWPosted: May 27, 2005

The makers of a commercial rocket said they successfully completed its test firing Friday morning at Vandenberg Air Force Base, clearing an important hurdle along the path to its first liftoff.

Space Exploration Technologies Corp. announced the successful completion of a full launch "wet" dress rehearsal, including pre-liftoff operations and a firing of the Falcon I rocket's engine for five seconds before it shut off at Space Launch Complex-3 West on South Base.

"Today we completed the largest milestone remaining before launch," said Elon Musk, CEO of SpaceX. "In a few months, we will receive Air Force clearance to fly, and Falcon I will make its maiden voyage."

Musk developed the rocket to provide a low-cost vehicle to carry satellites to space.

Technical problems had interfered with the team's hopes of conducting this test twice earlier this month. But those problems seemed behind the team by Friday.

"The test went off perfectly this morning," said SpaceX spokeswoman Dianne Molina.

The rocket was expected to make a Friday night road trip back to SpaceX facilities in El Segundo to be checked out.

LOGAN, Utah - Time is drawing closer for the maiden liftoff of the privately financed Falcon 1 launch vehicle, built by Space Exploration Technologies Corp. of El Segundo, Calif.

But the march to the launch pad has not been easy. The launch company, also known as SpaceX, has encountered engine troubles, supplier problems, mounds of regulatory paperwork and other costly woes requiring far more money to be spent than initially projected.

The SpaceX Falcon 1 rocket is headed for a September delivery to Launch Complex 3 West at Vandenberg Air Force Base, Calif. Once in position, the launcher will undergo an on-the-pad firing of its main engine, leading to a potential first flight toward the end of November.snip==========================================================================================================================WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK=============================================================This is the lunar-update at news.altair.comhttps://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-updatemailing list!This list is a moderated list. The moderator is Larry Kellogg(larry.kellogg at sbcglobal.nethttps://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-updatePlease send suggestions for postings directly to Larry.Larry's blog site, is:http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/General information about the mailing list is at:https://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-update=============================================================end

Thursday, November 10, 2005

Good day.NASA Science always has interesting material and this was posted yesterday.- LRK --------------------------------------------------------------NASA Science News for November 9, 2005How do you put troublesome moondust to good use? Simple. All it takes is a lunar lawn mower.FULL STORY athttp://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2005/09nov_lawnmower.htm-------------------------------------------------------------When the astronauts got back in the Lunar Module they smelled a burning smell like gunpowder. It is thought that the Lunar Regolith with its un-oxidized iron, rusted quickly in the rich oxygen atmosphere in the LM.- LRK --------------------------------------------------------------http://science.nasa.gov/headlines/y2005/22apr_dontinhale.htmDon't Breathe the MoondustWhen humans return to the Moon and travel to Mars, they'll have to be careful of what they inhale.April 22, 2005: This is a true story.In 1972, Apollo astronaut Harrison Schmitt sniffed the air in his Lunar Module, the Challenger. "[It] smells like gunpowder in here," he said. His commander Gene Cernan agreed. "Oh, it does, doesn't it?"

The two astronauts had just returned from a long moonwalk around the Taurus-Littrow valley, near the Sea of Serenity. Dusty footprints marked their entry into the spaceship. That dust became airborne--and smelly.snip---------------------------------------------------------http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/a17/a17.eva1post.htmlAPOLLO 17LUNAR SURFACE JOURNALMP3 Audio Clip starting at 124:14:09 ( 19 min 55 sec ) 2.26 MBhttp://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/pao/History/alsj/a17/A17A1241414.mp3snip124:19:39 Schmitt: Again?124:19:40 Cernan: That one's still safe. And that one's still safe.124:19:47 Schmitt: Smells like gunpowder, just like the boys said.124:19:53 Cernan: Oh, it does, doesn't it? (Pause)[They have just removed their helmet and, as did previous crews, notice that the dust in the air smells like burnt gunpowder. There is enough dust in the air to smell, but not enough to see.]124:20:00 Cernan: Okay, "Descent Water valve, Open." Ohh, boy! I ran out of water out there. I mean the drinking kind. (Pause)snip-------------------------------------------------------------What will the stories be like on the next Lunar Missions?- LRK -

Scientists and engineers figuring out how to return astronauts to the moon, set up habitats, and mine lunar soil to produce anything from building materials to rocket fuels have been scratching their heads over what to do about moondust. It's everywhere! The powdery grit gets into everything, jamming seals and abrading spacesuit fabric. It also readily picks up electrostatic charge, so it floats or levitates off the lunar surface and sticks to faceplates and camera lenses. It might even be toxic.

So what do you do with all this troublesome dust? Larry Taylor, Distinguished Professor of Planetary Sciences at the University of Tennessee has an idea: Don't try to get rid of it--melt it into something useful!snip=============================================================more info - 37 page 3.88 meg, pdf file of presentation by Larry Taylor -LRK -http://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar_knowledge/LTaylor.pdf=============================================================http://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar_knowledge/LUNAR AND PLANETARY INSTITUTELunar Knowledge Requirements for Human ExplorationMarch 1-3, 2004http://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar_knowledge/agenda.shtmlWorkshop Agendahttp://www.lpi.usra.edu/lunar_knowledge/final_report.pdfFinal Report by G. Jeffrey Taylor and Stephen Mackwell24 March 200428 page, 150 KB, pdf file.=============================================================http://ares.jsc.nasa.gov/HumanExplore/Exploration/EXLibrary/DOCS/EIC049.HTMLEngineering, Construction, and Operations in Space IVAmerican Society of Civil Engineers, pp. 1220-1229, 1994SINTERING BRICKS ON THE MOONCarlton C. Allen, John C. Graf, and David S. McKayAbstractSintering of full-scale "bricks" from lunar soil simulant materials can be accomplished by radiant heating to 1100¡C for approximately 2 hours, followed by slow cooling. Small-scale precompaction and the use of a thermally insulating mold are critical for producing strong, crack-free products. Sintering can also be accomplished using a combination of microwave and radiant heating, though the technique is extremely sensitive to thermal profile and configuration. Sintering in hydrogen is synergistic with oxygen production and yields samples containing enough iron metal to permit handling by a magnet.

Introductionsnip

Hybrid Microwave Sintering

The sintering of geological samples by microwave heating was initially investigated by Meek et al. (1985). We have run a series of investigations into the sintering of crushed MLS-1 basalt in a laboratory microwave furnace. The CEM MDS-81 furnace operates at a frequency of 2.45 GHz and delivers approximately 600 W of microwave energy to the sample. The furnace utilizes an inner chamber of refractory brick, which protects the stainless steel inner walls from overheating. Sample temperatures were approximately monitored by a thermocouple placed in a grounded steel housing immediately below the sample mold.

Each sample of crushed MLS-1 basalt was placed in a cylindrical graphite mold 3.6 cm in diameter by 3.2 cm high. The powder was hand tamped to achieve a porosity of approximately 30%. The mold was capped with a graphite lid 0.26 cm thick. All heating was done in air. However, the graphite mold served as an oxygen "getter," somewhat reducing the effective oxygen fugacity of the sample.

Controlled, even sintering of rock powder by direct microwave heating proved impossible, due to the combined effects of thermal runaway (Kenkre et al., 1991) and self-insulation. The microwave coupling efficiencies of the minerals in MLS-1 rise dramatically with sample temperature. As a result initial heating is slow, but becomes increasingly rapid at temperaturesabove approximately 400¡C. Microwaves penetrate the sample, and heating occurs throughout its volume. However, the center is well insulated by surrounding material, and heats faster than the outside. Typically, our samples sintered strongly or melted in the centers but remained unsintered on the edges.

To achieve uniform sintering we developed a hybrid heating technique, combining microwave and radiant heating. We surrounded the sample crucible with seven silicon carbide blocks, measuring 7.6 x 1.0 x 1.8 cm, in a "picket fence" arrangement (Figure 1). The silicon carbide converted part of the microwave energy to heat. Our samples were heated at full power forperiods of up to two hours, and then allowed to cool slowly in the mold under reduced microwave power.snip=============================================================http://lifesci3.arc.nasa.gov/SpaceSettlement/spaceresvol3/glassncer1.htmGlass and CeramicsLarry A. HaskinA variety of glasses and ceramics can be produced from bulk lunar materials or from separated components. Many glassy materials have been described in previous studies (Mackenzie and Claridge 1979, Criswell 1980). They include sintered (heated and pressed) regolith, quenched molten basalt, and transparent glass formed from fused plagioclase. No research has been carried out on lunar material or close simulants, so properties are not known in detail; however, common glass technologies such as molding and spinning seem feasible (fig. 7). Uses of glass include structural applications (bricks, slabs, beams, windows) and specialty applications(fiber strengtheners, insulation, heat shields, cables, light pipes). See figures 8 and 9.snip=============================================================Thanks for looking up with me.- LRK -=============================================================WHAT THE MIND CAN CONCEIVE, AND BELIEVE, IT WILL ACHIEVE - LRK=============================================================This is the lunar-update at news.altair.comhttps://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-updatemailing list!This list is a moderated list. The moderator is Larry Kellogg(larry.kellogg at sbcglobal.nethttps://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-updatePlease send suggestions for postings directly to Larry.Larry's blog site, is:http://kelloggserialreports.blogspot.com/General information about the mailing list is at:https://news.altair.com/mailman/listinfo/lunar-update=============================================================end

Statement of Michael D. Griffin, Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space Administration before the Committee on Science, House of Representatives Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee, thank you for this opportunity to appear today to update the Committee on NASA's plans for the future and our progress in implementing the Vision for Space Exploration. Since testifying before the Committee in June of this year, NASA has made substantial progress in defining a safe and sustainable approach to a program of renewed space exploration beyond low Earth orbit, while maintaining a balanced program for Exploration Systems, Space Operations, Science, and Aeronautics Research. This necessitates that we carefully weigh all the changes andadjustments we are making in our transition work to assure that the exploration program results in a safer and more reliable access to space while we continue to perform NASA's mission safely with the Shuttle.snip-------------------------------------------------------------http://www.house.gov/science/webcast/index.htmCommittee Web Cast

The House Science Committee is providing this site as a public service. All broadcasts are governed by the Rules of the House of Representatives and are not for political or commercial use.

Live Webcast -Thursday, November 3, 2005 -- 10:00AMFull Committee - HearingStatus of NASA’s ProgramsNOTE: Real Player version 7 or higher is needed to play webcast Archived Web Cast---------Archival space is limited. If an archive of a webcast does not appear, please check the committee's hearings page for the transcript of the hearing.

November 3, 2005Webcast of Full Committee - HearingStatus of NASA’s Programs>>>Go to the web site for the Real Video link <<<<- LRK -

http://www.nasa.gov/pdf/137173main_mg_csis.pdfRemarksCenter for Strategic & International Studies Workshop on Space Exploration and International Cooperation Michael D. Griffin Administrator, National Aeronautics and Space AdministrationUnited States of America 1 November 2005 Washington, D.C.

-------------------------------------------------------------

A snip here but do go and read.- LRK -----------------------------------------------------------

To Eisenhower, the subject of highways - more broadly interpreted as transportation infrastructure - was of compelling interest. Back in 1919, as a young Army captain, he joined the Army's first transcontinental motor caravan, a trip from Washington, D.C. to San Francisco. On the poor roads of that time, the caravan averaged five miles per hour and took 62 days tocross our continent.

snip

..., Eisenhower used his State of the Union Address to call for the creation of a national network of interstate highways, one that would contain 41,000 miles of new roads. Eisenhower would push hard for the enactment of this system, saying later that without the united forces of our communication and transportation systems, our country "would be a mere alliance of manyseparate parts."

Today, a half-century after this major commitment of our nation’s resources and energies, we have the modern interstate highway system. And just as important as those multi-lane roads with the green signs to which we’ve all become accustomed are the more than 15,000 exit ramps and interchanges that were built into this system. It is at these interchanges where gas stations, rest stops, hotels, restaurants, stores, many other businesses, and full communities took root. Because most of us have never traveled through an America which is not linked by the system, it is hard today to imagine the economic leverage that our nation has derived from its interstate highways.

That visionary focus on the proper role of government in creating crucial core infrastructure has paid dividends for decades to America’s wellbeing. And that is the context in which we should view NASA’s new architecture for space exploration, and the new generation of spacecraft which comprise that architecture. The Crew Exploration Vehicle, the associated Crew Launch Vehicle, and later the Heavy Lift Vehicle, will be the 21st century space equivalent of our interstate highways. This is the core infrastructure that will enable us to travel from the surface of the Earth to the Moon, Mars, and the near-Earth asteroids. And, as with our interstate highways, it is at the off-ramps of this system, for example the first base camp on the lunar surface, where the best opportunities for international cooperation will occur.

snip

But if we focus too much on the hardware, we run the risk of forgetting that the real excitement lies not in the trip, but at the destination. So let's think for a moment about what we will need at our first destination, the lunar surface. The plan we have developed offers, even on the first lunar return mission, four times the lunar surface exploration capability of the last and most ambitious Apollo mission, Apollo 17. It does so at 55 percent of the cost expended through the first lunar landing mission, Apollo 11. It meets the presidential goal for human lunar return, can be accomplished within the Administration's fiscal guidelines and, at this basic level, can be accomplished by the United States alone.

snip

The development of crucial infrastructure such as lunar habitats, power stations, scientific laboratories and facilities, radio and optical telescopes, manned and robotic surface rovers, unmanned logistics and resupply vehicles, communication and navigation systems, in situ resource utilization equipment, and long-duration life support systems will, if it is to occur at all, result from a great exploration partnership between nations. The "interstate highway" that we develop can carry international crews to the Moon, and later to Mars, to work on cooperative goals at research stations of international design and construction, possibly in much the same fashion as occurs in Antarctica today. Quite likely these efforts will be aided and abetted by commercial providers offering service for a fee; with the right incentives, this can be made to happen sooner rather than later.

snip----------------------------------------------------------

Once again, do read.

My taking snips is not fair to the whole set of remarks. I just wanted to prick your interest.

I want to see something that we can all look up for, but if we don't start we will never get there.- LRK -

"If confirmed, my fundamental areas of expertise combined with the Administrator's technical expertise and leadership and the Associate Administrator's long-term agency experience will produce a powerful and complete skill set within the senior team to lead NASA into the future."

And if you were looking up Halloween night on the East Coast of USA.- LRK ---------------------------------------------------------------http://www.nbc4.com/news/5220916/detail.htmlPossible Meteor Spotted Halloween Night Captured An Image? Send It To News4

Dana Coleman was anxious to know what was behind the "extraordinary bright light" seen last night in Richmond and as far away as Goochland and Dinwiddie counties.snip--------------------------------------------------------------

November 5 – Berkeley, California – You are invited to attend the Planetary Society's co-sponsored, Wonderfest, the San Francisco Bay Area Festival of Science. This two-day eventwill be held on Saturday, November 5 at Pimentel Hall, on the U.C. Berkeley campus, andon Sunday, November 6 at Stanford University (see below). Pairs of world-class researcherswill present public dialogues on some of the most provocative scientific questions of ourtime. Come join them to absorb, to reflect, to question, and to challenge. Saturday'sprogram begins at 1:00 p.m., and culminates in the evening with the presentation of theCarl Sagan Prize for Science Popularization, and the Mind Duel – between professors andstudent champs. For a full description of the sessions, U.C. Berkeley campus map,directions, ticket prices, and parking information, please check here.

Planetary Society Members receive a discount on admission at this event when they show theirMembership card.

November 5 – Oakland, California – You are invited to a lecture and book signing by SimonSingh, author of "The Big Bang," on Saturday, November 5, at 7:00 p.m. at the ChabotSpace & Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland, California. From early creationmyths to the orbiting of space telescopes, Dr. Simon Singh, best selling author and award-winning documentary filmmaker, will give a historical overview of the scientific effort thatresulted in the theory of the Big Bang. Singh gives a colorful history of the people behindthe theory, where the ideas came from and how the theory developed over the years.

Tickets for this event are $7 Non-member/$6 Science Center Member, and are available atthe Chabot Space & Science Center Box Office. Please call 510-336-7373 to purchasetickets and for further event details.

November 6 – Stanford, California – The Planetary Society invites you to attend, it's co-sponsored Wonderfest, the San Francisco Bay Area Festival of Science. This two-day eventwill be held on Saturday, November 5 on the U.C. Berkeley campus (see above), and onSunday, November 6, at the Hewlett Teaching Center, at Stanford University.

Enjoy sessions by Psychology, Linguistics, Chemistry and Physics professors atStanford, as well as a 3:00 p.m. session by Planetary Society Board Member, Chris McKay, aPlanetary Scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center, who will be debating "Should WeEver Set Foot On Mars?" with Margaret Race, Principal Investigator at the SETI Institute.For a full program of the sessions, Stanford campus map, directions, ticket prices, andparking information, please check here. Planetary Society Members receive a discounton admission at this event when they show their Membership card.

November 9 – Los Altos Hills, California – You are invited to attend a non-technical,illustrated talk by Planetary Society Board Member, and astronomer Chris McKay, of NASA'sAmes Research Center on Wednesday, November 9 at 7 p.m. The lecture is entitled"Revealing Titan: What the Cassini Mission Has Discovered about Saturn's Giant Moon." Dr.McKay, co-investigator on the Cassini-Huygens mission to reveal Titan's surface for thefirst time, will fill us in on what the probe and the orbiter are finding out about this coldand alien world, which nevertheless has features that remind us of Earth.

The talk will be held in the Smithwick Theater, Foothill College, El Monte Road and Freeway280, in Los Altos Hills, California. It is free and open to the public. Parking on campus costs $2. Call the series hot-line at 650-949-7888 for more information and driving directions.

November 12 - Oakland, California – Come and enjoy a bi-lingual lecture on the "Skywatchers of Ancient Mexico," by Dr. Anthony Aveni. Dr. Aveni, one of the foremost authorities on Mayan archeoastronomy, will present a lecture and slideshow about the role Venus played in the Mayan culture, how the Mayans tracked the planet, their calendar system, what the hieroglyphs tell us, and the role of astronomical alignments in their architecture. The Mayan priest-astronomers were able to accurately predict solstices, solar eclipses, the path of the Sun, the transits of Venus and other celestial phenomena using very simple tools and their naked eye. The lecture will be simultaneously translated into Spanish. This event will be held on Saturday, November 12, 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Chabot Space & Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd., Oakland, California. Tickets are $8, and are available at the Chabot Space & Science Center Box Office. Please call 510-336-7373 to purchase tickets and for further event details.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------October 27, 2005, 10:00 am, 2318 RHOB, Joint hearing before the House Subcommittee on Space and Aeronautics (Chrm. Calvert, R-CA); Committee on Science and the Subcommittee on Government Management, Finance and Accountability (Chrm. Todd Platts, R-PA); Committee on Government Reform -- Financial Management at NASA: Challenges and Next Steps

"But if we focus too much on the hardware, we run the risk of forgetting that the real excitement lies not in the trip, but at the destination. So let's think for a moment about what we will need at our first destination, the lunar surface. The plan we have developed offers, even on the first lunar return mission, four times the lunar surface exploration capability of the last and most ambitious Apollo mission, Apollo 17. It does so at 55 percent of the cost expended through the first lunar landing mission, Apollo 11."

"If confirmed, my fundamental areas of expertise combined with the Administrator's technical expertise and leadership and the Associate Administrator's long-term agency experience will produce a powerful and complete skill set within the senior team to lead NASA into the future."

"There have been 97 visitors onboard the station from 10 countries in the past five years. Twenty-nine have lived aboard as members of the 12 station expedition crews. Russian cosmonaut Sergei Krikalev is the only one to serve as a member of two resident crews, Expedition 1 in November 2000 and Expedition 11 this year."

-------------------------------------------------------------

Happy Anniversary, ISS - From TSS (The Space Store)!

November 2, 2005 marks the fifth anniversary of humans living on the International Space Station. The Space Store proudly marks this event by marking down all Station patches. Use coupon code CongratsISS to get 10% off and start your collection today!

"Using NASA's Hubble Space Telescope to view the ninth planet in our solar system, astronomers discovered Pluto may have not one, but three moons. If confirmed, the discovery of the two new moons could offer insights into the nature and evolution of the Pluto system; Kuiper Belt Objects with satellite systems; and the early Kuiper Belt."

"A 220-pound microsatellite developed by the Air Force Research Laboratory, Space Vehicles Directorate, Kirtland Air Force Base, N.M., recently accomplished significant mission milestones by rendezvousing three to fours times with the upper stage of the Minotaur I launch vehicle at distances between 1.5 kilometers and 500 meters. The Air Force has employed the Experimental Satellite System-11, commonly referred to as XSS-11, to investigate a variety of prospective space applications including servicing, repair, and resupply."

"Saturday's troubleshooting on the Elektron oxygen generator has not restored the system's primary micropump circuit to nominal operation as yet. The Elektron continues to work satisfactorily on the backup pump in 24A mode."